Lock tuning for Traditions Tennessee Rifle

[Wayne Smith]

If the sear engagement is clean and obvious when the lock is out of the stock then the issue is that wood is interfering with the lock. If it is not when the lock is out of the wood then you need to find out why.

[fouronesix]

Serg.
I sent a PM with a little more info and one more thing to check.
You are absolutely right! Safety first. A balky lock or trigger is no good.

[Sergeant Earthworm]

Serg.
I sent a PM with a little more info and one more thing to check.
You are absolutely right! Safety first. A balky lock or trigger is no good.

Hallelujah! Hooray! Yippee! Huzzah! Did I mention Hooray!? It worked! Sear engages like a sear is supposed to engage, no more guessing.

416, next time you are in Colorado look me up and I'll buy you a beverage of your choice. Heck, for that I'll buy you two!

[fouronesix]

Super. Shoot, I'll buy you one! Fine looking boy there!

[BadDaditood]

I'm building the same rifle, without that problem, however i am curious as to what was in the super secret PM that caused all the beer to flow....

Sarge, how did you get the hammer off the tumbler? I whittled an old arrow shaft down to the size of that square hole, banged on it till it split, then came inside to re-read this thread.

[Sergeant Earthworm]

I think the reason for the pm was to avoid stirring up a lot of chatter that did not contribute to solving the problem.

And besides, beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy, so any reason to crack one open must be a good thing.

I did not make any adjustments to the tumbler because as waksupi noted it is very easy to make a minor problem into a disaster by messing with the tumbler. This rifle had three issues causing the problem. One was that there was a bit of wood inside the lock opening that was putting just enough pressure on the sear to prevent positive sear engagement. Second problem was that the double set trigger adjustment screw was screwed in too far. Third was a sear that was very rough at the point where it contacts the tumbler.

First thing I did was to carve away the wood that was in contact with the sear. Second thing was to back out the adjustment screw about one turn. Third, I lightly stoned the contact surfaces on the sear because the way it came from the factory it was rough at the point where it contacts the tumbler. After doing all that, I put it back together and voila! no more sear engagement problem.

I did try to remove the hammer but that thing is on there so tight that I gave up so as not to damage anything and because it wasn't necessary to remove it to fix the problem. As noted above, don't make the mistake of trying to disassemble the lock without a mainspring vise. Track of the Wolf sells a good vise for $10.95 and it is worth twice that.

[Sergeant Earthworm]

And, btw, if it seems like a simple fix that's because it was. In over 25 years of shooting side-locks I never had a problem like that and didn't want to damage the lock by doing something dumb.

[BadDaditood]

thanx for the prompt reply Sarge while reading it i coulda sworn i heard my Pops voice saying "put that thing back together before you ruin it!"

got a box from Tracks yesterday, new mainspring vice had some surface rust sitting on top of the oil and a thread was boogered... less than a minute to file n clean. a well spent sawbuck there.

[fouronesix]

Bad,

One thing to try to get the hammer off the sear shaft. But don't try to pry it off!
With the lock in hand, unscrew the hammer screw about half way. Tap, tap, tap.... with a plastic mallet directly on top of the screw while holding the lock gently. The inertia of the hammer should begin to lift it off the shaft.

[BadDaditood]

thank u sir... i might try that, unless i hear Pop's voice from the Happy Hunting Grounds again

[fouronesix]

It's not the only way to do it but it is a fairly safe way. If the hammer is a really tight/swaged fit on the tumbler shaft then turn the hammer screw out only a couple of turns. You'll have to tap a little harder, in which case you want as much screw engagement as possible. The "secret" is to hold the lock gently while tapping directly on top of the screw. The specialized alternative is to use a puller- a tool that is made specifically for removing a hammer. Kind of like a pulley or swaged bearing puller. No matter the method, the idea is that the hammer must be pulled straight off the shaft. Trying to pry one off is not a good idea.

[Sergeant Earthworm]

thank u sir... i might try that, unless i hear Pop's voice from the Happy Hunting Grounds again

BadDad,

What 416 said. I would add that unless you have a really good reason for taking it off, probably best to leave it on.

[Sergeant Earthworm]

so, what is the other 96%? Pb?

[fouronesix]

so, what is the other 96%? Pb?

Don't know. Sometimes I worry the 96 is not entirely H. sapiens.

[fouronesix]

See, even a caveman can do it..... take and post the photo that is

The thick foam also works for helping the secret of the "gentle" hold.

[BadDaditood]

great pic and info thanks!

i was thinking along the lines of a gear puller too, but mine is way too big.

Before attempting the above i took a peek at L&R rpl locks, just in case.

Around $100 plus shipping is a substantial upgrade to a kit that cost $266. I'm sure it's worth it- i've heard L&R make fine locks- but for now i just

deburred/polished the mainspring and plate where they made contact. Also i *very carefully* softened the sharp edges of the sear spring... it really needed

help.

Not sure i mentioned it in this thread but this kit is my first venture into *the Dark Side*. Got the barrel blued monday, stained stock today... hopefully

*Holy Black baptism of fire* services next week.

[fouronesix]

No fear! Veritable piece o cake.

All locks function about the same way and once you take one apart and put back together a few times you'll see they are fairly simple machines. The rough cast imported or even domestic T/C locks can be made to function smoothly and correctly with minimal work.

I've notice many lock plates are warped a little. Lay a straight edge on the inside surface of the plate and hold up to back light to detect warpage. Easy to correct by placing plate on end grain of hardwood block then hitting top of plate with a plastic mallet.

Very light stoning of the flat contact surfaces won't hurt a thing. Those surfaces include: inside surface of lock plate, both surfaces of tumbler, both surfaces of sear and inside surface of bridle. Not looking to completely polish to bright- only need to knock off the imperfections.

Just make sure not to over tighten the rear bridle screw that is also the axle for the sear. The sear has to rotate freely as it is sandwiched between the plate and bridle. With the double set trigger types that usually have a fly- just make sure the fly also rotates freely in its recess as the tumbler unit is sandwiched between the lock plate and the bridle.

Unless something is way out of kilter, should only take about 30 minutes to an hour to do all this.

[BadDaditood]

great tips, thanx again

btw- i also love to smack stuff with hammers... could it be i'm more than 4% ?